


7. Guilt

by love_write_edit_sleep



Series: NATM 31 Fic Challenge [7]
Category: Night at the Museum (Movies)
Genre: M/M, larrys job is a bigger joke than donald trump, not sorry, the huns and the neanderthals are at it again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-02
Updated: 2018-07-02
Packaged: 2019-06-01 11:11:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15141785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/love_write_edit_sleep/pseuds/love_write_edit_sleep
Summary: McPhee is scared of Attila after a fit of rage from the Hun. While Attila attempts to make it up to him, Teddy confronts Ahkmenrah about his own guilty conscience.





	7. Guilt

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Sorry, I altered the original idea slightly.

“Lawrence, my dear boy!” Teddy greeted the night guard as he approached the president, arm in arm with Ahkmenrah. “Goodness, the cast on your arm has changed.”

“Yeah, um, I don’t need the sling anymore.” Larry smiled. “So now I can move my arm around.” He lifted it up to demonstrate.

“Larry says we can draw on his cast later, and sign our names.” Ahkmenrah added.

“I wonder what people would think if they saw that a 4000 year old Pharaoh and the 26th President of the United States had sighed your cast.” Teddy chuckled.

“Yeah, that’s why you’re signing with your nicknames.” Larry retorted. “Not ‘President Theodore Roosevelt’ or ‘Ahkmenrah, 4th king of the 4th king’. Ted and Ahk will do.”

“That seems reasonable.” Teddy was about to continue when the sound of Huns screaming and shouting tore him from his thoughts. “My god, what’s going on?” Teddy asked, but Larry was already on the move, running up the stairs to the upper main halls.

The night guard found the Huns with the Neanderthals, who had seemingly finished sharpening their spears and were now pointing them tauntingly at the Huns.

“Hey, hey, stop!” Larry’s eyes widened when he saw McPhee among them, standing in front of Attila, preventing the angered Hun from reaching the Neanderthals. “You don’t need to hurt them.”

McPhee was insane, Larry concluded. He, himself, wouldn’t dare get between the Huns and Neanderthals on a good day.

Attila was shouting so loud and so fast that Larry couldn’t pick up anything out of what he’d said, and apparently, neither could McPhee.

“Come on, let’s talk about this.” McPhee pleaded, taking Attila’s hand in his. Attila snatched his hand back and drew his sword from his back, holding it threateningly at the Neanderthals. The Neanderthals screeched and taunted the Huns more, angering them further.

“Atli, stop it!” McPhee cried, grabbing the Hun by the arm.

What happened next shocked everyone.

Attila snapped his hand back so fast that he caught McPhee in the process, slapping him so hard he fell to the ground with a cry of pain.

“McPhee!” Larry and Ahkmenrah rushed to his side, fussing over him as they helped him up. Attila tried to help, only for Teddy to pull him back.

“You’ve done enough damage, my friend. Let’s go and calm down.”

The Neanderthals backed off as soon as Attila had snapped, fearing what he was capable of if he was capable of hurting his boyfriend. The other Huns scattered as Teddy and Attila went off in search for a quiet place.

“Are you alright?” Ahkmenrah asked as they stood. McPhee nodded, but said nothing. Larry and Ahkmenrah shared a concerned look.

“McPhee, he hit you, you’ve every right to be upset.” Larry whispered. He’d promised McPhee he’d never be harmed the way his parent’s had harmed him, only for McPhee’s own boyfriend to break that promise.

“I’m fine.” McPhee muttered, looking away. As he did, the extent of Attila’s actions became clear.

“By Ra…”

“Oh, god…” Larry stepped forward, freezing when he saw McPhee flinch, as though preparing for another hit. “Hey, I’m not gonna hurt you, you got a huge bruise.” Larry indicated to McPhee’s cheek.

“That’s nothing I’m not used to.” McPhee spat, wincing at his own tone. Larry forced a smile.

“Come on, let’s go to the office and see what we can do for it.” He offered. McPhee didn’t move for a moment before finally nodding and allowing himself to follow Larry.

* * *

The moment Teddy and Attila stepped into the Aquarium, Attila began to cry, screaming at his hand as though it was his hand’s fault and not his own.

“Attila, dear friend, you need to calm down or you’re going to get nowhere with McPhee.” Teddy told him. Attila stopped, grumbling to himself before sitting on the floor. “You need to accept what has happened and learn from it.” Teddy added, sitting in front of him.

 _“Hurt scared kitten.”_ Attila whispered, picking at the floor.

Teddy, recognizing the phrase ‘scared kitten’, nodded.

“He’ll be alright, he’s probably just in shock.” Teddy knew he was lying. Attila had hit McPhee so hard he was certain the miniatures had heard it from the other end of the corridor. There was no doubt McPhee was in pain, though whether there was any evidence of that remained to be determined.

All he could do for now was calm the Hun down before he hurt anyone else, accident or not.

* * *

“Here we go.” Larry leaned forward with an ice-pack, causing McPhee to whimper as he raised his arm to protect his face.

“McPhee, it is alright, we have no intention of harming you.” Ahkmenrah assured him.

“No, no, of course not… Sorry…” McPhee whispered, sitting down and dropping his arm. Larry smiled, but the reassurance didn’t stop the Curator from flinching as the night guard approached him again, placing the ice over the bruise. “Sorry.”

“Hey…” Larry whispered, shuffling closer. He didn’t fail to notice McPhee stiffen. “I-I’m sorry, I said this wouldn’t happen and then… I didn’t think… I’m sorry.” McPhee sighed.

“It was an accident.”

“That doesn’t make it okay!” Ahkmenrah cried. “You are too precious to be harmed!”

“Ahk, you okay?” Larry asked. Ahkmenrah backed down and nodded. A knock at the door turned everyone’s attention to a rather concerned President.

“Attila would like to attempt to make amends.” Theodore explained softly. “However, if you need more time-”

“No, it’s, um… okay.” McPhee nodded.

“We’ll get out of your way.” Larry whispered, placing a hand on McPhee’s shoulder. Ahkmenrah and Larry turned to leave when McPhee grabbed Larry’s wrist.

“Larry, can you… Could you stay? Please?”

“Hey, yeah, sure thing.” Larry smiled, surprised that McPhee had asked for help, but he wasn’t going to complain. If McPhee felt safer with him around, who was he to leave?

Ahkmenrah forced a smile and left the room with Teddy as Attila walked in, looking ashamed. Larry didn’t fail to notice McPhee looking down, unable to face the Hun.

This was not in Larry Daley’s job description.

* * *

Ahkmenrah sighed as Teddy closed the door.

“Is he alright?” Teddy asked.

“No.” Ahkmenrah sighed. “He has a large bruise on his face. He’s in pain but insists on hiding it, even though the evidence is in plain sight.” The Pharaoh looked up at Teddy with worry evident on his face, making him look far younger. “He will be okay, won’t he?”

“I’m sure he’ll be just fine after they talk things through.” Teddy took a moment to consider the boy in front of him. “Ahkmenrah… I… I’ve been thinking about what I’ve done for a long time, and… I regret never letting you out of that sarcophagus, though it has occurred to me that I’ve never done anything to express my regrets.”

“It’s alright.” Ahkmenrah smiled. “I’m free now, you cannot change the past.”

“It’s not alright, it’s not alright in any way. I am just as bad as Dr McPhee’s parents for standing by when I knew you were clearly suffering.”

“Teddy, that is not true!” Ahkmenrah cried. “You were made to believe that I was ill-intentioned, you did what you believed was right; protecting the others. I hold no grudges against that.”

Before Ahkmenrah could say another word, Teddy swooped in and pulled the young King into an embrace. Ahkmenrah hugged him back.

“You are too kind for your own good.” Ahkmenrah smiled.

“I guess we have something in common, then.”

* * *

To say the exchange was awkward was an understatement.

Larry watched as Attila tried to move closer to McPhee, only for McPhee to close his eyes and flinch away. Attila froze, at a loss of what to do at that point.

 _“I am sorry.”_ Attila whispered, his voice uncharacteristically soft in a tone that neither Larry nor McPhee had ever heard from the Hun. _“Attila hurt scared kitten.”_

“I’m fine.” McPhee muttered. Larry rolled his eyes and pulled the ice pack away, revealing the bruise to Attila, who began to mutter in Hunnic, horrified.

“This is what happens when you can’t control your anger, Attila.” Larry raised his voice, pointing to the bruise. “You can’t keep picking fights. McPhee was trying to help you and you hurt him because you didn’t listen. Do you understand?”

“Larry-”

“This is not okay, Attila!” Larry snapped. “You hurt someone you love because you did not control your temper. There was no reason for you to pick a fight with the Neanderthals. They know we have a no violence rule, and so do you. They weren’t trying to take your men or your territory or whatever, they were just exploring what they’d made.”

 _“I’m sorry…”_ Attila whimpered, looking down. McPhee moved to stand, but decided against it, watching as Attila trembled. Larry noticed McPhee trying to decide what to do; wanting to move to comfort his boyfriend but being unable to in case he lashed out again.

_“Scared kitten deserve more, deserve better.”_

“No, no, no, no, no…” McPhee was up in a flash, practically throwing himself at Attila, who caught him and hugged him tight. “No, hey… Atli, It was an accident, I know that. Y-you just need to find a way to calm yourself down.”

“Attila never want to hurt scared kitten.”

“I know, it’s okay, we’ll work on it, okay?” McPhee forced a smile as he pulled away. “Did mean old Larry Daley scare you?” Attila nodded pathetically; McPhee laughed.

“Ouch.” Larry couldn’t help but smile. “So… you guys okay?”

“Yeah.” McPhee smiled as Attila scanned the bruise on his boyfriend’s face. “Thanks, Larry.”

“Alright, I leave you guys to it.”

* * *

 

Every morning, Larry Daley would tell himself that he did not earn enough money for the shit he had to do every night, but he knew he wouldn’t change it for anything.


End file.
